1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to ladies belt accessories, and more particularly to devices for supporting the dangling free end of the belt in alignment with the body of the belt.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Ladies belts in come in a variety of lengths and are made of a wide variety of materials ranging from thin, supple material such as cloth or glove leather to relatively thick and stiff leather or braided or woven belts of materials such as cotton. When buckled, the free end of the belt hangs down in an unslightly manner unless it is somehow supported next to and in alignment with the main portion of the belt encircling the waist of the user.
Various devices have been proposed for supporting the loose belt end in devices having a closed loop portion threaded onto the belt and another portion which can be clamped onto the loose belt end. Typical of these devices are those shown and described in Henry Schlutz U.S. Pat. No. 1,414,048 issued Apr. 25, 1922, and Vivian C. Markham U.S. Pat. No. 4,627,132 issued Dec. 9, 1986.
A belt loop stay consisting of a single loop which is threaded on the belt and through which the free end of the belt is threaded is shown and described in Mark J. Udelhofen U.S. Pat. No. 4,819,303 issued Apr. 11, 1989.
A belt clasp is shown in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 112,997. The patent contains no information at all as to how or where the belt clasp is used, nor whether it has anything to do with supporting the free end of the belt.
Clip devices for uses other than in connection with belts are shown in John F. Pivcevich U.S. Pat. No. Des. 141,949 issued Aug. 7, 1945; Ralph M. Karlsen U.S. Pat. No. Des. 239,147 issued Mar. 16, 1976; and Ernest E. Brayford U.S. Pat. No. Des. 295,501 issued May 3, 1988.
The above-listed patents are believed to be relevant to the present invention because they were adduced by a prior art search made by an independent searcher, and a copy of each of the above-listed patents is supplied to the Patent and Trademark office herewith.